Imagine. A place that time forgot. Where white horse-drawn carriages with coachmen wearing tophats take you on a long forgotten journey. Past churches and homesteads, with candles in their windows. Past battlefields and barracks, graveyards with tombstones that were once used to operate on the wounded, the scars from the hatchets still showing. Couples taking an evening stroll hand in hand along the waterfront.
This is Niagara-on-the-Lake. One of the most haunted locations imaginable. This is a place with so much history, you can sense it in everything you see. The buildings on 224 Regent St. have welcomed guests from the 1700's when The Harmonious Coach House first welcomed its guests.It is now called The Old Angel Inn.
Captain Swayze was a British officer during the War of 1812. Swayze was captured and killed by American soldiers in the basement of the Inn and is said to haunt it ever since. The hauntings can be so strong that some present day guests have not stayed through the night and have checked out early.
Vague apparitions of a nineteenth-century soldier wearing a red uniform and military music from that era have been reported in different rooms of the Inn. On one occasion the staff were having a heated argument in the pub and Swayze showed his displeasure by throwing dishes and cups between them. Some guests have reported hearing the chairs and tables sliding across the pub floors in the wee hours of the morning, long after the staff have left.
We went as a group of four on two seperate occasions and I can tell you there is definitely something paranormal going on there. We did not see Captain Swayze, as much as I would have liked to, but many unexplained events occured.
On our first visit we had gone on a carriage ride in the early evening. We were told that if you hang an American Flag somewhere in your room it will agitate Swayze and definitely stir things up. My brother bought a small flag at a gift shop and put it in the bathroom (a supposidly hot spot for paranormal activites in this room of the inn). When we came back after dark we discovered the trap door to the attic (which was above the flag) had been flipped open. The ceilings are about 9 feet high and none of us could reach it. Coincidence? You decide
On our second visit a few years later, we stayed in the same room. We had gone for breakfast in the pub downstairs. My two brothers had gone up to the room and to their surprise as they approached the room door, they heard music playing. Upon opening the door they discovered the radio was playing. We had not even touched the radio the whole time we were there. How did it turn on by itself.
Later that night we went out for an evening walk. Upon our return to the room we discovered the antique mirror in the bathroom tilted completely. We were there the whole weekend and no vibrations had moved the mirror. We leave for a half hour and discover this. The next morning my brother was lying in bed and the draw string for the blind in front ot his bed started going in circles all by itself. Everyone was asleep and there were no fans or air conditioning on. Then all of a sudden it stopped.
These are just subtle things but every guest has experienced something. One couple were in their room and the old wooden window which was shut suddenly lifted open (upwards, not down). They were completely freaked out.
So there you have it. You be the judge. There are many more stories from the inn, which I may cover another time. Even if you don't experience anything, it is worth the visit. The inn has so much character and ambience, from a bygone era. The pub downstairs has great food and music on weekends. Be sure to ask to see the cellar. This is where Swayze met his end and I don't think he has ever left.
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